Speeches Page 3 

Kia ora and thank you for welcoming me here today. I would like to thank Deputy Principal, Kiri Gill, Teacher in Charge, Debbie Whiteley, and TPU students for hosting us today. And I would also like to acknowledge my colleague Minister of Youth Affairs Hon Nanaia Mahuta, and thank you all for joining us today.

We are the caretakers of our children's future.  Good health is essential to young people doing well in school, and staying in school.  Making sure young people can access health services is about ensuring appropriate services are available at the right places, and at the right time.   I think this is so important that I have asked all District Health Boards to develop specific youth health plans for their communities this year.

Healthy students are more likely to participate, learn and achieve well at school, and health services for young people are therefore of great importance.  This fact is already recognised by the many dedicated individuals providing youth health services to their communities.  And it is a fact recognised by the Government.

Today, I'm pleased to launch a new Government initiative which will see $17.2 million dollars over the next four years for youth health services in schools.  The funding will be used to develop health services in all decile one, two and three secondary schools, in teen parent units, and in alternative education facilities.  This is about providing consistent access to health services for 40,000 young New Zealanders in schools, across the country, in the areas where they are most needed. 

This is the first time that there will be direct investment throughout the country in school-based health services by the Ministry of Health, and is part of this government's commitment to providing accessible primary health care for all New Zealanders.

Some District Health Boards and schools are very proactive, and I can think of many in Rotorua, where I come from, that fall into this group, and already have comprehensive school-based health services, while other schools have no health services at all. 

So, we already have a foundation of services within schools and this initiative builds on what is already in place. The services will be further developed based on the needs of students and the school community. We expect that services will be mainly nurse-led, and may involve nurses being placed in schools on a full-time basis. Many will include GP-clinics on a regular basis.  The services will be different for each school and will be developed in consultation with the school and the DHB.

In developing health services for young people we need to ensure the services are appropriate to young people.  Young people can be put off seeking health advice when they view services as not youth-focused, or when they feel embarrassed about using them.  Services need to be youth-friendly, accessible, confidential and they need to be provided by people who are responsive to the needs of young people.

So it makes good sense to provide these services in schools.  Schools are physically accessible.  Schools are a familiar environment.  And schools can keep in touch with their students' changing needs and social environment. 

And the evidence shows that school-based health care improves young people's access to care - particularly for those who are from low socio-economic backgrounds and live in areas of high deprivation.

Money alone will not be enough to make this programme a success.  For this new initiative to succeed we need to ensure that it is supported at all levels.  The Ministry of Health, district health boards, primary health organisations, schools, and community organisations will all be working together.  I encourage you all to give every assistance to this initiative.  Your efforts, and the efforts of everyone involved, are what will make youth health services in schools a success.

But ultimately, this initiative will succeed based on its engagement with young people.  We must ensure then, that we focus on the needs of the 40,000 students around New Zealand who can expect to benefit from these services.

This initiative builds on gains already made through the implementation of the primary health care strategy and the Government's significant investment of $2.2 billion over the past seven years to lower the cost of primary health care.

By investing in youth health services we are investing in the future of all New Zealanders.  I look forward to your support and encouragement in helping build that future, and demonstrating that young people do matter to us.

Thank you.

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